Write Better Books | A Lesson From James Bond

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I love James Bond. Watching Goldfinger on TV is one of my earliest cinematic memories. Sean Connery was the coolest guy imaginable—he had incredible gadgets, a beautiful car, and even more beautiful girls. Gert Fröbe was the perfect villain and Oddjob terrified me for weeks.

For me, Goldfinger is the best Bond film.

Over the years, I’ve watched every Bond movie countless times. Some come close to Goldfinger. Some fall short—way short. But even the bad ones (Die Another Day, for example) can’t stop me from eagerly awaiting the next Bond adventure.

It’s strange, really. When you’ve seen them all multiple times, read a dozen books, explored the comics, and learned about Ian Fleming, the cars, and the film locations… you understand how formulaic Bond is. Almost every film follows the same structure:

  • Megalomaniac villain
  • Bond girl
  • Cool car
  • Special gadget
  • Opening stunt scene
  • Car chase
  • The classic “Bond meets villain at dinner” moment
  • Final explosion, villain dies, Bond escapes

That’s every single movie. And yet—I can’t wait to see the next one follow the exact formula.

Amazon now has creative control over the franchise. I’m not thrilled about that. Amazon (and streaming services in general) aren’t exactly known for quality storytelling. Barbara Broccoli, on the other hand, did a great job preserving the Bond essence. Still, when the next Bond film drops, I’ll be watching.

But why?

Thinking about it, I realized that the real reason I love these movies is simple: it’s the character. Bond is the kind of man every guy wants to be. We want his adventures, his cars, his women… maybe even his license to kill.

Even through some underwhelming eras—Pierce Brosnan was a fantastic Bond, but aside from GoldenEye, he was handed weak scripts—the character endures. Ian Fleming created a timeless figure who can survive bad plots and forgettable villains (remember Diamonds Are Forever?).

The big lesson here?
If you want to write great stories, start by creating a great character. When you build someone as compelling as James Bond, even a formulaic plot can become a crowd favorite. Readers (and viewers) will keep coming back—not for the structure, not for the stunts, or the explosion, but for the character.

The Best-Selling Book Genre

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My favorite genre is sci-fi. Apparently, I’m in the minority. In Germany, sci-fi accounts for only about 5% of the book market—and that’s only because it’s lumped together with fantasy. If you remove Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Lord of the Rings, and Game of Thrones, the genre probably makes up closer to just 2%.

I also enjoy reading comics, which officially represent around 8% of the market. However, in Germany, comics are grouped together with cartoons, humor, and satire, so the actual share of graphic novels is significantly lower.

Every now and then, I throw in a James Bond adventure, continue my Reacher journey, or pick up another crime or spy novel. This genre is firmly in the mainstream. Combined with horror and thrillers, the crime genre accounts for nearly 25% of book sales.

But there’s one genre that towers over all the others: Romance.

I’ve seen data from the U.S. suggesting that nearly half of all book sales fall into this category. In Germany, the numbers are a bit lower, but romance and love stories still top the charts. I even read once that romance novels with explicit content—basically erotica—sell as much as thrillers, fantasy, and sci-fi combined.

Whew. Thinking about that, I realized: I’ve never read a book anywhere near that genre. And I doubt I ever will. If I don’t enjoy reading something, I certainly won’t enjoy writing it. So don’t expect any romance novels from me anytime soon.

Thinking about my family and friends, I can’t name a single person who reads romance either. So I asked myself: Who’s buying all these books?

Then it hit me: it’s the women.

Women make up 65% of all book buyers.

Is it any wonder that publishers today mostly sign female authors? Does it surprise why Amazon promotes such books in every search query? Or that books targeted at women are the first thing you see when you walk into a bookstore?

So, if you’re in it for the money, write romance—and aim it at women.

If you’re in it for the fun, stick with robots and spy detectives. And maybe—just maybe—you’ll attract a few of the last men standing who still read more than 140 characters at a time. But even if you don’t, the joy of sending your protagonist on a journey across time and space will always beat writing yet another version of Christian Grey falling for your average barista named Bella from the corner coffee shop.

At least, if you’re a man.

What I’ll Write Over The Next Months … Years … Decades (Becoming an Author #3)

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I never really made a big plan. When I decided to write 1,000 words every day, I just started — and whatever idea came to mind first, I worked on.
This, as it turns out, was not the best approach. Some ideas I abandoned halfway through; others I finished but chose not to publish because they didn’t work well as standalone novels.

I quickly realized that having a plan isn’t just important when writing a single book — it’s essential when you want to write multiple books every year.

I have dozens of series ideas stored in my swipe file. They all look intriguing, but I know I shouldn’t start them all at once. Instead, it makes more sense to tackle them one by one.

My plan for now is simple: focus on a single series until it’s finished.

In that series, I’ve nearly finished editing Part 1. I’ve already written first drafts for Parts 2 and 3, and I’m currently writing Part 4. Overall, I’ve outlined at least 20 parts, which will eventually bring the series to a satisfying conclusion — or at least a conclusion that I personally find satisfying, tying together the major plotlines that start in Part 1.

The series is called 17, named after the main character.

It’s a crime-thriller-action story in the spirit of Bond, Reacher, Hunt, and Holmes, where the protagonist solves a new case in each book, while a massive conspiracy unfolds across the entire series. I’m blending in elements of conspiracy theories, aiming for a tone that is dark but also has moments of fun.

Whenever I need a break from the series, I’ll work on a standalone novel — not a new series. Just a single novel, perhaps in the sci-fi, mystery, or western genre, something different to refresh my creative energy.

The only other major project I’ll allow myself is a lifelong work I’ve been outlining for years: It began when I watched Disney mishandle Star Wars and HBO rush Game of Thrones to an unsatisfying end. I started thinking about how I could do it better. The result is a sci-fi opera I currently call The Eye Sees It All.

This will be a lifelong project — something I want to build slowly, one page at a time. Honestly, I have no idea how large it will eventually become.
Unlike the 17 series, where I can already estimate that I’ll be able to publish multiple books each year, I might only manage one book for The Eye every couple of years — if that.

So, my loose publishing plan will be:

  1. A 17 part
  2. Another 17 part
  3. A standalone novel
  4. A part of The Eye or another 17 part

That’s the current goal.

If I can successfully set up the system that I have in mind, new books will be out every March, June, September, and December.

I think it’s possible. Hopefully, I’m right.

I’ve Created My Contact Page With Another Plugin

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I recently looked into creating an author page on Goodreads. Many authors whom I like have their own. Readers can ask questions about writing and specific books on there, which is cool. It’s basically a social media platform for writers and readers to connect.

One of the requirements to get an author page on Goodreads is to have a website with a contact form. So I set up a contact form on this website.

It was a bit annoying to set up the mail that sends the message over to me, but I think I figured it out in the end. Everything else was easy to do with a plugin called Contact Form 7.

Coach Red Pill’s Videos Will Always Be There

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When I first came across Coach Red Pill, I didn’t like him. He seemed like a con man trying to cash in on a trending topic—“the Red Pill”—which was gaining popularity back in the day. But as he grew on YouTube, his videos kept popping up in my recommendations, and eventually, I gave him a second chance.

Somehow, he grew on me. With each video I watched, I found myself liking him more. Even when I disagreed with him, there was usually something valuable—or at least entertaining—to take away.

When I heard he died in Ukraine, it felt strange. I’d never met him, and he had no idea who I was. Still, it felt like losing a friend. I had spent more time watching his videos and listening to his thoughts than with actual real life friends. Until his death was officially confirmed, I kept hoping it was just another internet hoax. People will say anything to go viral these days, so maybe—just maybe—someone had reported his death without checking the facts.

But sadly, it was true. Coach Red Pill (Gonzalo Lira) is gone.

He once talked about his kids. He had them later in life and was afraid he wouldn’t be around long enough to give them the life advice he wanted to share. That was one of the reasons he started making videos: so his advice would be there for his children when they needed it.

And in that, he succeeded.

His content is still available—for example, here at the CRP Archive, where you can find 436 of his videos.

Imagine his kids knowing that, in a way, their dad is still around. Of course, they’d rather have him back for real. But having him live on as a sort of digital version is as close as you can get once someone is gone.

I’d love to do the same. When I die, I want to leave behind thousands of articles, hundreds of videos, and dozens of books. I want family, friends, and everyone else to be able to look me up whenever they want—to learn from my mistakes, my successes, and my ideas, to get inspired, to laugh, and to think.

RIP Gonzalo Lira.